What was your earliest memory?
I was born in Burnley, northeast England, but my early years were in South Africa, where my father worked. I have vivid memories of our garden in Johannesburg and the first day at my Afrikaner primary school. However, I have forgotten almost all the Afrikaans that was compulsory.
Did you go through training/university or straight into work?
I joined Britannia Royal Naval College from school at 18 but was selected for a sponsored degree course at City, University of London. The degree started after two years in the navy, so I arrived at university after 15 months’ life at sea on a destroyer, with great memories of visits to the West Indies and the western seaboard of the Americas. While this could not be described as a “gap year”, it was certainly interesting.
Ambition or talent, which is more important?
Talent without ambition does not equal delivery. The combination of the two yields the highest results.
What would you have done if you hadn’t gone into shipping?
I was eight when I decided my working life would be at sea, and everything I have done has been related in some way to the ocean. I am not sure any other occupation would have given me the same tremendous satisfaction and buzz.
What is your biggest extravagance?
Membership of Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club.
What would you like to own that you do not possess?
I have owned various Land Rovers, but never a Land Rover Defender.
How do you relax?
Short-term escapism is through a good book or TV drama. Scandinavian crime stories are particular favourites. Long-distance trekking is the medium I use on holiday to slow me down enough to really experience different cultures and people, and be part of their way of life. My wife, Sue, and I are slowly ticking off a long bucket list of trails. The most recent was an arduous trek in the Everest region. Other highlights were the Grand Canyon and the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail in Japan.
Where are you happiest?
We settled on the south coast of Devon [southwest England] in 1982. Whilst not a fan of the weekly commute from London to Devon, the joy of arriving home with the coast and Dartmoor close by makes every weekend a genuine holiday.
What would you change in shipping?
The lack of visibility that has come with the disappearance of ships from most of the world’s capitals has created a damaging shortfall in political awareness. Either the industry needs to accept this and ensure that national and international associations are funded appropriately for the real political battles, or it needs to fund a global campaign to demonstrate its irreplaceable role and value.
Is politics important to you?
Yes. One of the huge satisfactions of working in the ICS is to grow an awareness of international politics and to understand how political relationships impact the climate in which shipping operates.
Which four people, living or dead, would you like to invite to dinner?
Robert Macfarlane (writer on travel, climbing and nature); George Mallory (did he summit Everest?); Gertrude Bell (writer, explorer, archaeologist); Levison Wood (explorer).
What would your 20-year-old self say to you today if you met?
I had little idea where my life would lead, so he would be amazed at how well it all turned out! We would agree it was more by luck than good judgment.
What are your favourite song, book and film?
My musical taste is very wide and it is impossible to isolate one piece — eight for a desert island, maybe! Books: Whatever I am reading at the time... often politics, history or crime fiction. Currently I am reading a history of the East India Company and James Stavridis’ Sea Power: the History and Geopolitics of the World’s Oceans. Film? It has to be Top Gun! Movies were an important part of life onboard submarines, but the list of available films was rarely great, so habitually we would pick a favourite and watch it night after night, eventually with the sound off, we knew it so well. Top Gun was one of those.
What keeps you awake at night?
Jet lag and inter-industry disagreements.
What is the most important lesson you have learnt?
Only in exceptional circumstances do the feelings and needs of your co-workers come second.
What are your best and worst characteristics?
I have always put team building at the forefront and it has served me well — but I have also been lucky in being presented with exceptional team players. I can be impatient if others do not share my order of priority for the delivery of work!
Your greatest achievement so far?
A great family, two terrific grown-up children and a first grandson. Command of a nuclear submarine has to be one of the greatest challenges at sea and has the highest imaginable satisfaction level. I am proud to have been part of building the authority and influence of the ICS with the unfailing support of the chairman, board and team.
What has been your greatest disappointment?
The vital role of the IMO is sometimes eroded by national and regional interests that are so focused on their own narrow issues that they fail to recognise the greater good.
What ambitions do you still have?
To remain healthy and mobile for long enough to complete my long travel bucket list.
